STACK NZ Jan/Feb Summer Edition Issue 70

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art courtroom drama, part Cold War thriller, Steven
pielberg’s classy new film tells the fascinating tale
ehind the shooting down of a US spy plane over
ussia in the 1960. The story actually begins in 1957,
hen humble Brooklyn lawyer James Donovan
Tom Hanks) is given the next to impossible task of
efending Russian spy Rudolf Abel (Mark Rylance).
nsurprisingly he loses the case, but when US spy
lane pilot Gary Francis Powers is captured by the
ussians, Donovan becomes the middleman in a
high stakes prisoner swap deal. Working from a script co-written by
the Coen Brothers, Spielberg brings his usual visual excellence and
immaculate pacing to the proceedings, while Hanks is in his element
as mild-mannered but dogged lawyer.
The lawyer who came in from the cold
BRIDGE OF SPIES
Release Date: 24/02/16 Format:
Much has been made of how this intense gangster
epic heralds a major return to form for Johnny Depp –
and make no mistake, he’s back to his very best here
as notorious Boston mob boss James ‘Whitey’ Bulger,
who is allowed to build a criminal empire while acting
as an informant for the FBI. However, this is very much
an ensemble effort: Joel Edgerton almost steals the
film as compromised FBI agent John Connolly, slowly
sliding into a pit of corruption, while there are terrific
supporting turns from an A-list supporting cast that
includes Benedict Cumberbatch, Kevin Bacon, Dakota Johnson and
Peter Sarsgaard. Suffused in the slate grey tones of the great crime
movies of the ’70, Scott Cooper’s muscular direction completes a
perfect package.
Gangster No. 1
BLACK MASS
Release Date: 17/02/16 Format:
fter the left-turn that was the fifth Paranormal Activity
ovie – The Marked Ones was more spin-off than
equel – The Ghost Dimension returns to the core story
f possessed sisters Katy and Kristi for what is billed
s the final installment in the found-footage franchise.
family move into their new home, where dad Ryan
Chris J. Murray) discovers an old video camera that
an see images from an otherworldly dimension, and
box of cassettes featuring recordings of the scary
iblings from 1988, which seem eerily linked to the
present. Before long, an amorphous black mass is hovering in the
house, with demonic designs on daughter Leila (Ivy George). Although
it doesn't stray too far from the established formula, the 3D ensures
that Paranormal Activity 6 lives up to its subtitle.
End of the line for found-footage franchise?
Paranormal Activity: The Ghost Dimension
Release Date: 24/02/16 Format:
ven Adam Sandler’s most devoted fans would have to
dmit he’s been on autopilot of late. However, this fun
ddams Family-esque animated sequel finds the star/
o-writer back in sparkling form and this is arguably
he best Sandler movie since 2009’s Funny People.
his time around, Drac (voiced by Sandler) is gradually
oming around to the fact that his daughter Mavis
elena Gomez) is now married to a human (Adam
amberg), and is delighted when they provide him with
a grandchild. However, when the boy shows no sign of
becoming a vampire, Drac and his pals resolve to bring out the monster
within him. The direction of Genndy Tartakovsky – creator of Samurai
Jack – fizzes with hyperactive energy, while grown-ups will appreciate
the accomplished comic playing of Sandler’s regular repertory company.
The Drac pack is back
Hotel Transylvania 2
Release Date: 03/02/16 Format:
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